Enchanted
by Elphaba06
Summary: This is a spinoff of Charmed. It's about three girls who don't know each other right away but become The Enchanted Ones with the help of The Charmed Ones. This is the first book of Enchanted. Please read and review. It's my first fanfic story.
1. Prologue

Prologue: 19 years ago

In a land of beauty where all things blossom and creatures and animals roam freely with no fear, a very special child was born. This child of fortune was much awaited by the beings of the land, for this child would be the most powerful single child ever born to the magical and mythical community.

A woman of incredible beauty strolled around the land with amazing grace. She looked at all that was around her and breathed in the glory that she called her kingdom. She watched the wood nymphs dance through the forests and the leprechauns count their gold as that sang. As she smiled at the scenery of home, she placed her hands on her belly and her unborn child. Despite the rules of the magical world, she had fallen in love with a mortal and conceived a child. A powerful child. Her heart ached as she had to leave her love behind to protect him from the evils that were out to get her. She had to return to her kingdom to keep them safe. Now, as she walked along the wooded path, she wondered how her beautiful child would flourish in her world. With the wind blowing through her long, curly hair, she heard whispers of reassurance from the Gods. She watched as a beautiful butterfly landed on her caramel skin.

"Well, hello. And how are things in your home", she asked it. A small smile crossed the butterfly's small face and with great form, it flew away. "I see all is well", she said as she watched it go.

As she continued her trek barefoot, she came across a serene river where she decided to give herself a rest. She sat on a rock near the water's edge.

"Soon, you will get to see all that is beautiful," she directed towards her child. "The world is waiting for you."

It was as if the baby heard her. The woman's hand flew to her stomach as a sharp pain ripped through her body. Instead of alarm taking over her senses, a smile grew on her face. The baby was coming. Slowly she pulled herself off her place on the rock. When she was fully up, she felt a trail of water run down her leg from under her dress.

She made her way halfway back before she could not longer go on. The baby needed to be born. She found an open spot in the middle of the woods and placed herself down among the foliage. After an intense wave of pain washed over her once again, she closed her eyes and used her powers to call for help. A low roll of thunder sounded and the wind swayed the trees in a rhythmic dance. Within seconds, three beautiful wood nymphs came prancing through the woods to the woman's side.

"Mother Nature, are you alright?" asked one who was dressed in an emerald dress.

"What has happened?" asked another dressed in purple.

"The baby is coming," replied Mother Nature as she tensed through another rush of pain.

"Oh my! What do we do?" the third nymph, dressed in pink, said with a rush of panic.

"Calm down, girls. Everything's going to be fine. I just need you to help me. Grab the baby when it comes out, I'll do the rest," Mother Nature said with a reassuring voice.

Mother Nature managed to coax herself through another hour of pain before the little miracle was born. The sun had disappeared and the moon replaced it, bright and welcoming. When the moon was high in the sky, directly over the mother and her helpers, the must anticipated child came into the world. With a light, angelic cry, the baby was placed into its mother's arms. Mother Nature stared down at her little darling.

"It's a girl" said the emerald nymph.

"She's beautiful" said the pink nymph.

"Yes, she is," said Mother Nature.

"What shall you name her?" asked the purple nymph with excitement in her voice.

Mother Nature looked up at the moon and back at her little girl.

"Well," she said, "since she wanted to wait until the moon was upon us, I shall name her Varali which means moon. And since she is as beautiful as my Earth, her middle name shall be Kaia for Earth."

"Varali Kaia," said the purple nymph. "That's nice." Mother Nature smiled at her wooded friend.

"Yes, but what about her last name?" asked the emerald one.

Mother Nature thought for a moment and then smiled. "Stevens, after her father, Joe Stevens." She directed her attention to her infant. "Do you like that? Varali Kaia Stevens?"

Her question was answered by a soft smile that crossed the child's small face.

"Then so be it. Welcome to the world little one. I love you." With that, Mother Nature kissed her baby on the forehead and ran her finger down the little one's tiny leg. What she didn't see was the glowing spot on the infant skin, right over her pelvic bone. As the glowing diminished, a symbol took its place. The skin took on a darker shape in the form of an Egyptian cross and matched the necklace her mother wore around her neck periodically for protection.

As the wood nymphs and other creatures celebrated the little one's arrival, little did they know they were celebrating much more. For this child would be a very powerful one and with the help of two other special girls would become something amazing. For the next two years on this exact day, these two girls would be born to magical mothers and mortal father, only they would not be as strong as Varali. They would go by the names of Veronica Azura Wilson and Violet Sofia Peters. Together, these three would be known as The Enchanted Ones.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: A powerful vision

Piper Halliwell stared out of her kitchen window at her husband and sons playing in the backyard. She smiled as she watched Leo play hide and seek with the boys. The sound of their laughter was mesmerizing. Especially when little Chris would orb to a different hiding spot every time Leo got close.

Her amusement was interrupted by the sound of Pheobe calling her name from the foyer.

"I'm in the kitchen" Piper called, turning away from the window.

Pheobe Halliwell walked into the kitchen and dropped her bag on the table. She looked exhausted.

"Hey, are you alright?" Piper asked, eyeing her sister. "You don't look so hot."

"Yeah, I'm just really tired," Pheobe replied.

"How's married life treating you?" Piper put on an oven mitt and pulled out a sheet of cookies from the oven.

"It's great. Coop literally is the man of my dreams." Pheobe said. She reached over the island for a cookie. Piper smacked her hand away.

"Ah, don't touch. These are for Wyatt's school bake sale tomorrow."

"Gees, okay," Pheobe said, rubbing her hand. She headed for the fridge. "Hey, have you seen Paige?" she asked, pulling out a bottle of water.

"Um, she called earlier and said she'd be here later. I think she and Henry are house hunting." Piper replied.

Pheobe nodded. The girls were silent for a moment as Piper placed a new batch of cookies in the oven and Pheobe sipped her water. They turned at the sound of Paige orbing in. In a mass of swirling white lights, Paige Matthews appeared in the kitchen and plopped into the nearest chair. She put her head on the table.

"I see you had a great day," said Pheobe, causing Piper to laugh.

Paige lifted her head and looked at her sisters. "I am never going house hunting with Henry ever again. The guy's like Sherlock Holmes. He has to inspect EVERYTHING. I thought I was going to die if I stayed there for one more minute."

"So wait," Piper said, coming around the island, "you left Henry there?"

"Yeah," said Paige.

"Paige!"

"What? He was getting on my nerves," she replied. Piper gave her the I-don't-believe-you-look. "Oh come on, don't like act you've never left Leo somewhere."

"And where have I left him?" Piper challenged.

Paige was silent for a moment. "I don't know, but I'll think of something," she replied. This made Piper and Pheobe burst into laughter.

"Where are the boys?" Pheobe asked Piper.

"Out back with Leo," she replied.

"I think I'll go say hi." Pheobe turned away from her sisters and headed to the back door but stopped. She suddenly felt incredibly dizzy. Before she knew it, her knees gave and the entire room went back. It was replaced by something else.

Three young girls, about the same age. One in an alley, one in a lab of sorts, and one in what seemed like a work break room. Each girl alone and each girl being attacked. The girl in the alley was facing a grotesque demon of enormous strength. She was hauled into a brick wall with a flick of the demon's hand. When the demon produced a fireball, the vision switched. The girl in the lab was being attacked by a similar demon. Chemical vials were being thrown as the demon prepared to finish her off with an electric charge. The vision changed yet again to the girl in the break room. She was being thrown against a shelf of glasses. The demon stepped over her with a dagger in hand.

Pheobe came out of her premonition with a scream. She was lying on the floor with her head resting on Piper's lap and Paige leaning over her.

"What happened? Are you alright," Piper asked in a panicked voice.

"I had a premonition…a really strong premonition," Pheobe replied weakly.

"Yeah, we know. You didn't even touch anything," Paige remarked.

"What did you see?" Piper asked.

"Um, three girls being attacked. They looked really young. I don't know, it went by so fast." Pheobe said.

"Where were they?" Paige asked.

"One was in some kind of alleyway, one was in a lab with lots of chemicals around, and the other seemed to be in a work break room. Maybe at a restaurant? There were glasses around."

"Okay, well we just have to try to find them. I'll go tell Leo," Piper said, getting up and walking out back.

Just then, a heart appeared in front of Pheobe and Paige. Pheobe watched as Coop appeared in the room. He saw her on the floor and ran to her side.

"What happened? I sensed that you were in trouble. Are you okay?" He asked her, lifting her off the ground.

"I'm alright, honey," she said, "I just had a really strong premonition."

"About what?"

"She'll explain it to you later," Piper said walking back into the kitchen, "right now, we have to go find those girls."


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Enchanted

Varali Stevens dribbled the basketball in circles around her father, Joe. Her long, brown hair was pinned up off her neck which was drenched in sweat.

"Come on, dad. Give it up already," Varali said as she made yet another basket over her dad's head.

"Oh no, not until I win," Joe replied.

"Dad, if I don't leave now and go take a shower, I'm going to be late for my afternoon class." She stood in front of him with her hands on her hips. Joe watched his daughter stand in front of him in the manner her mother used to. He looked into her bright green eyes, her mother's eyes. Varali looked just like her. Every time he looked at her, Joe was reminded of the heartache he experienced when her mother left, saying it was too dangerous to stay. He also remembered the night when she showed up 4 years later with a sleeping child in her arms. She told him that it wasn't safe for her anymore and begged him to protect her and love her. Of course he agreed but she also asked him to tell her that her mother died. After much argument, Joe finally agreed to her request. Now, looking at his 19 year old daughter, he wished he could tell her just how similar she is to her mother.

"Dad? Hello? I have to go," Varali said, interrupting his thoughts.

"Come on. One more basket for the win." Joe waited for her reply.

Varali was silent for a moment, thinking about his offer. "Alright, fine. Just one!" she said, holding up her index finger.

Joe clapped his hands together, grabbed the ball from the ground, and checked it to her. To his dismay, Varali scored yet again over his head.

"Bye dad!" she said as she turned away.

"Come on, that's not fair. One more," her dad yelled.

"NO! I have to go," she said, turning to face him.

"Alright. Well, stop by later for dinner"

"And what? Have TV dinners?"

"No," he said, "pizza."

Varali laughed. "Okay. I'll see you then. Bye." She kissed her father on the cheek.

"Hey, do you want a ride?"

"No, I think I'll run." And with that, Varali took off for her resident hall. She was a sophomore at the University of San Francisco and she absolutely loved it. College life really suited her. As she reached her resident hall, she made her way to her dorm room on the second floor.

After taking a quick shower and throwing on jeans and a fitted t-shirt, she headed back out the door for her final class of the day. She glanced at her watch. She was already running behind schedule. She would have to take the only shortcut she knew. She rounded a corner and began walking.

"I hate alleyways," she said as she walked through. "Thanks dad."

As she walked, she thought she heard footsteps behind her. That's odd, not many people work up the nerve to walk through alleys. She turned around, but there was no one there. She shrugged and continued walking. She heard it again. Someone was definitely following her. This time when she turned, her scream echoed in the alleyway.

"Urgh," Veronica Wilson grunted in frustration at her experiment. "I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!" She didn't realize that her shouts of anguish towards her chemistry lab were attracting attention.

"Are you alright?" the girl sitting next to her asked.

Veronica looked over. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just hate chemistry with a passion."

The girl leaned over and lowered her voice. "Then, why are you in this lab?"

"Because I needed some sort of lab to complete my schedule. I thought chemistry would be okay because I did pretty well with it in high school." She looked back at her test tubs. "But I guess I was wrong."

The girl laughed. "Looks that way. But wait, I don't get it. Aren't you like an art major?"

"Close, music. I told you, I thought this would be easy," Veronica replied.

"Yeah, we all did." With that, the girl turned back to her work and began cleaning up her vials. Veronica went back to hers. Everyone else seemed to be cleaning up and she couldn't figure out how to get started.

She poured two chemicals into a test tub and watched as the mixture turned a dark shade of blue.

"That's going to explode, you know," a guy said from behind her. She turned around.

"Look, do you want to do this for me?" she snapped. The guy put his hands at surrender and walked away. She quickly poured the liquid into the nearby sink. She sat back and stared at her experiment.

"Hey Ronnie, do you want to go get food with us?" the same guy asked.

"No, thanks Tyler," she replied without looking away. "I really need to finish this."

"Okay. I'll catch up with you later." With that, Tyler and the others left.

When Veronica looked around, she noticed how empty and quiet it was. She didn't realize EVERYONE had left. Call her paranoid, but she always felt a bit uneasy when left in a place alone.

She turned back to her lab and continued to stare. Finally, giving up for the day, she gathered her supplies and started to clean and put them away. _Maybe I'll catch up with Tyler and the gang_, she thought as she hurried her cleaning. She was so frazzled with cleaning that she didn't hear the classroom door creak open and shut. She jumped at the hand placed on her shoulder. She thought it was Tyler.

"Oh hey, I'm glad you came back. I'll go with you now." But when she turned around, she saw that it wasn't Tyler at all. It was someone else…or something else.

"I know you will," the thing said.

Veronica screamed as the large, beastly of a man threw her across the lab table with one hand.

"Excuse me," Violet Peters said as she made her way through tables with a tray of dirty glasses in her hand. "Excuse me, sir. Could you please just moved aside so I can get through and-" The man backed up instead, sending Violet and her glasses to the ground. Instead of helping, the man looked and walked away. "Gee, thanks," Violet said as she started to collect the shards of glass from the floor.

"I got it, I got it," another waitor said.

"Thanks, Jimmy," she said. She heard the restaurant phone ringing and went to answer it. "Quake," she said into the phone. She listened for a beat. "Alright, can you hold on? Thanks." She placed the phone down. "Julie!" she called as she walked around the bar.

A woman of about thirty came walking over. "Someone's on the phone asking for the manager," Violet informed her.

"Thanks," Julie said.

Violet walked away as Julie took that call. She grabbed a new order pad off the counter as she went. She was so busy shoving the pad into her pocket that she didn't see Jimmy walking backwards with a tray of spaghetti. She slammed right into him as he turned around. Bad move. The spaghetti went flying and landed all over Violet. She let out a shriek.

"Violet," Julie called.

"Yes," she answered in a scared voice.

"Go take a break." Julie said.

"Thanks." Violet was happy for the time to relax a bit. She'd been on her feet since she'd come in after school. All she wanted to do was find a seat the put her feet up.

She walked into the break room in the back. The room also acting as a storage room for varies types of wine glasses.

She sat down on a nearby stool, unable to walk any farther into the room, and rested her head on the shelf of glasses.

"Uh, I don't think I can move another inch," she said as she closed her eyes.

"Good," someone said from behind her.

Her eyes shot open. She turned to see an enormous man standing over her. She screamed when she looked down and saw a very unique knife in his calloused hand.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: New Discoveries

"Alright, so we are we going?" Piper asked as she drove through the city.

"I don't really know," replied Pheobe, "all I know is that we have to find them soon. I was thinking that there had to be a reason that I had the premonitions at the same time."

"And what's that?" asked Paige from the backseat.

"Well, the attacks must happen at the same time," Pheobe said.

"Well great. How are we supposed to prevent that?" Paige sat back in her seat.

Piper pulled over the truck. "We're going to have to split up," she said.

"But Pheobe doesn't know where any of the girls are," Paige commented.

"I know that." Piper turned to Pheobe. "Okay, can you remember anything specific about the surroundings?"

Pheobe thought for a moment. She let out a breath of frustration. "No, I was only paying attention to the attacks."

"Okay. Try closing your eyes and thinking really hard. Maybe there was something you missed," Piper said.

"Yeah, like the entire location," Paige murmured. Piper threw her a look over the seat.

Pheobe closed her eyes and tried to remember her premonition, hoping she could get something out of it. Piper and Paige waited anxiously for Pheobe to remember.

"Ugh, nothing," Pheobe said with clear distress.

"Okay, try again," Piper coaxed.

Pheobe closed her eyes yet again. This time when she did it, her body jerked forward as she slid into another premonition. It was the shortest premonition she'd ever experience. Only a second or two. She looked over at Piper.

"Well?" Paige said.

Piper understood what happened. "What did you see?"

"Two signs. One was the University of San Francisco sign and the other was…" Pheobe cut off mid-sentence.

"What?" Piper asked.

"Quake," Pheobe said. Piper's eyes went wide.

"My Quake? The one I used to work at?"

Pheobe nodded.

"Alright, now we can split up." Paige said.

"Yeah," Piper said, "Pheobe, you go to Quake and Paige and I will go to the University. Take the truck, we'll orb."

"Okay, meet back at the manor," Pheobe said as they got out of the car and she got into the driver's seat.

Piper and Paige watched as Pheobe drove off. Once she was out of sight, they went to a nearby alley and orbed to the campus.

Pheobe parked Piper's dark blue Jeep Grand Cherokee in the closest parking spot by the back door of Quake. _Need a quick exit_, she thought as she exited and headed for the front of the restaurant. When she entered, she looked around at the familiar place. _Ah, the good ol' days_, she thought. That's when she saw her. A young girl with dark hair walking toward the break room. Pheobe knew she had to act fast.

"Excuse me," she said as she made her way towards the back. A waitor stopped her.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

"Yes, what's that girl's name?" she said pointing toward the break room.

"The one who just went in there?" She nodded. "Oh, that Violet Peters. Would you like me to go get her for you?" the waitor asked.

"Um, no thanks. Where's your bathroom?" she asked, trying to create a diversion.

"Right over there," he replied, pointing a little off from the break room. Of course Pheobe already knew where the bathroom was.

"Thanks," she said as she began walking in that direction. When she reached the bathroom, she looked around to make sure no one was watching then she changed direction slightly and headed for the break room. She opened the door just in time to hear Violet scream.

Pheobe took off running to where she heard Violet. When she saw her, there was a large demon standing over her with a dagger. _Just like my premonition_, Pheobe thought. She ran over and grabbed a block of wood that was lying on the ground. As she went to nail the demon in the back of the head, she stopped dead in her tracks. The girl in front of her, Violet Peters, disappeared right before her eyes in a whirl of smoke only to reappear behind the shelf of glasses. Pheobe could tell the demon was just as surprised as she was.

Coming back to her senses, Pheobe whacked the demon in the head, causing him to stagger and drop the dagger (wow that rhymed). It was obvious the demon knew who Pheobe was. He grunted and shimmered out, leaving Pheobe alone with the girl.

Pheobe looked around the shelf but couldn't see Violet. She was hiding.

"Violet?" she called softly, hoping the girl would come around. "Come on, it's safe now."

Pheobe jumped at the sound of a glass hitting the floor. There was Violet, staring down at her body with a scared look on her face. Pheobe ran over to her.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

Violet was shaking. "I…think…so. What happened? Who was that? And what happened to me?"

Pheobe could see the young girl's fear. She put her arms around her shoulders and led her to the back door, to the truck. "I'll explain later. Right now, we need to get you out of here."

Violet must have been really afraid because she walked along with Pheobe in a dazed state, not protesting in the slightest bit.

"Okay, now what?" Paige asked after she and Piper landed in a secluded area on the campus.

"Um, we split. You go find the girl in the lab and I'll go look in the alleyways," Piper said, looking around.

"Okay, and we'll meet back here when we find them?" Paige asked.

"Yeah," Piper said, walking away.

"Call my cell if you need me," Paige yelled as she began to orb.

Paige orbed into a building that she thought looked scientific.

"Okay…nice Paige, where the hell are you?" She began to look around. There was a girl at a receptionist desk who looked like she could use some business. Paige walked over to her. "Excuse me, can you tell me where I can find the lab?"

"What lab?" the girl returned sounding not too pleased to be interrupted from her nothingness.

"Um, I'm not sure. That's the problem. I was supposed to be meeting someone, but I don't know what lab she's in." Paige quipped.

"Well, what's her name?" the girl asked.

Paige was silent for a moment. She was about to sound real dumb. "I…don't know."

"You don't know. Okay well the only lab that is still open is the one in the building next door. Room 313." The girl was obviously tired of Paige.

"Thanks." Paige said as she began to walk away. "And next time, try to sound like you don't have a pole up your butt." This made the girl give her a dirty look. Paige didn't care. She turned and continued to walk, heading for the building next door.

Paige entered the building and went straight for the elevator, pressing 3 as the doors shut. When they reopened, she stepped out and looked for a sign to tell her where to go next. Luckily, there was a board with classroom listings on it. Paige turned right and headed down the hall. She pushed up against a wall as a group of college kids came rushing past talking about which pizza parlor they wanted to go to.

Once they past, Paige continued on, noticing they had come out of the room she needed to go in to. Suddenly, a demon shimmered in right in front of her, before she could get to the door. He didn't notice her and walked into the room, shutting the door behind him. Paige hurried to the door. She heard the girl's scream followed by a loud crash. _Oh god, I hope I'm not too late_, Paige thought to herself as she went to open the door. To her dismay, it was locked.

"Damn, when did demons get smart enough to know how to lock doors", she said to herself. She had to orb. When she appeared in the room, she saw the disturbing looking demon standing over the girl, who was now on the floor by the window.

"Table!" Paige called, orbing a lab table in the direction of the demon, sending him against the nearest wall. She ran over to the girl who was sitting halfway up with a scared look on her face. "What's your name?" Paige asked.

"Ronnie," she said with a shaky voice. "Ronnie Wilson."

"Hi, I'm Paige. I'm going to get you out of here, okay?"

"Okay, but how?" the girl asked.

"Um, I haven't quite figured that out yet," Paige said, causing the girl's eyes to widen. "Oh, don't worry. I never know what I'm doing, but it always works out in the end…well, usually."

Paige got to her feet, prepared to fight the gnarly beast.

"Move aside, witch. It's her that I want," the demon said, eyeing Veronica.

"Oh come on. You losers have been after me and my sisters for years. Now you have the chance and you're going to pass it up? What are you, chicken?" Paige said. The demon snarled. "Oh, that's attractive."

Paige screamed in surprise as the demon shot forward an energy ball. To her surprise, it never made it her way. It bounced back and hit the demon right in the chest, sending him back into the wall. Paige turned to see that Veronica had gotten to her feet and was extending her hands. She was looking as them as the shook like crazy.

"Come on, let's get out of here," Paige said.

"Wait, what just happened?" Veronica asked.

"I don't know. We'll figure it out. Come on before he wakes up."

That got Veronica's attention. She let Paige grab her arm and push her into a run out the door. She didn't think of looking back.

Piper must have searched at least 5 alleys and still she couldn't find a soul. _If this is a college campus, where the hell are all the students_, she thought to herself. She stopped in her tracks as she saw a large man walking slowly in to an alley across the street. _Maybe_, she thought making her way over. That's when she heard the scream. _Bingo_. Piper took off running in the direction of the alley.

She arrived just in time to see the girl being hauled back into the brick wall. The girl hit the ground with a thud. Piper watched, stunned, as the girl got to her feet. She staggered a little before the demon came forward and grab her by the throat.

"What the hell are you?" the girl spat in the demon's face.

"Something you need to be very afraid of," he replied.

"Ha! I doubt it," the girl said with confidence.

Piper was amazed at how fearless this girl was…or seemed. When she caught sight of Piper standing behind the demon, the girl's eyes went wide.

"Please, help me!" she screamed, coming out of her tough girl image.

The demon looked over his shoulder at Piper, clearly upset for the intrusion. He threw the girl back into the wall. Only this time, it was so hard Piper could have sworn she heard what sounded like thunder when the girl hit the ground.

Piper waited to see if the girl would move. She didn't. Piper sprang into action. She immediately threw out her hands as she began running toward the girl still on the ground, clearly unconscious. Without a second glance, she blew the demon up. She knelt down beside the girl.

"Crap," she said when she noticed an ugly gash on the girl's forehead. "I have to get you out of here, fast." She threw the girl's arm around her neck and began to lead her out of the alley, back to where she split with Paige.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: The Start of Something Difficult

Pheobe looked over a Violet as she made her a cup of tea. The girl was sitting at the kitchen table staring down at her hands which were shaking badly. Pheobe walked over and placed the hot tea in front of her.

"Thanks," Violet said quietly, still staring at her hands.

"You're welcome, sweetie. How are you feeling?" Pheobe asked sympathetically. She felt so bad for this girl, something this big being dumped on her like this.

"Numb," she said, trying to muster out a laugh.

"That's understandable," Pheobe said.

"Who are you?" Violet asked, finally looking up into Pheobe's face.

"I'm Pheobe Halliwell."

"Oh. I'm Violet…Peters." Violet was trying to stop her hands from shaking. Pheobe placed her hands over them. "What happened to me back there?"

"I'll try to explain that in a little bit," Pheobe replied. "First, I want to wait until my sisters get here. They can help." Violet fell silent. Pheobe had to come up with something. "How old are you?" she asked.

"Seventeen," Violet replied. "I got to Lincoln High School. I'm a senior."

"Cool." Pheobe really couldn't think of much else to say so the pair sat in silence until she heard the front door swing open.

"Pheobe!" Piper yelled from the front of the house. Pheobe jumped to her feet and ran towards her voice.

When she came in view of Piper and Paige, she saw Paige ushering in a very shaking girl and putting her into a nearby chair and Piper dragging an unconscious girl.

"What happened?" she asked, rushing over to help. She helped Piper lay the girl onto the couch.

"She was thrown into a wall. The first time it happened she got right back up, but this time, it knocked the wind out of her," Piper said, moving aside so Paige could heal her. Violet had followed Pheobe into the living room and was now standing behind the chair that housed Ronnie.

After some difficulty, Paige finally healed the girl on the couch. When she came to, she looked at her surroundings and settled her eyes on Paige.

"Who are you? And how did I get here?" she asked, anger peeking in her voice.

"I'm Paige and these are my sisters, Piper and Pheobe. Who are you?"

"You still didn't answer my second question. How did I get here? Now I have a new one." She looked over at the other two girls. "Who are they?"

"That's what we're all here to figure out, sweetie," Pheobe said, settling in beside the girl. She shot up, clearly angry that no one was answering her questions. "Where are you going?"

"Away from here. I don't know you people. For all I know, you could be out to kill me or something," the girl said.

"We're not, but I guarantee that if you walk out that door, someone will kill you," Piper said, giving the girl a stern look. "What's your name?"

The girl stared at Piper with fire in her eyes. _This girl's tough_, Piper thought, _I like her. _But Piper could see the girl was not going to give in that easily. As if reading her mind, Pheobe walked over to the girl and put her arms around her shoulders.

"We're not going to hurt you. We're here to help. Something very bad happened to the three of you and we're here to make sure it doesn't happen again. So please, tell us who you are so we can do what we're supposed to."

The girl looked around at the faces staring at her. She had to admit, these people were persistent. Finally, she caved.

"Varali Stevens," she said.

"Nice to meet you, Varali. That's a unique name," Pheobe said.

"Yeah," Varali said. She was going to say that her mother gave it to her, but she barely knew these people.

"I'm Violet…Peters," the girl standing behind the chair said.

"And I'm Ronnie Wilson," the girl sitting said.

"Great. Now that we all know each other, can you tell me how the hell I got here?" Varali said, temper flaring.

"Yeah and what happened back there?" Ronnie chimed in.

"Like I said, that's what we're trying to figure out. You see, the three of you were attacked and we have to figure out why so we can stop it from happening again," Pheobe offered.

"Attacked….by what?" Violet asked, fear in her voice.

"Demons," Paige said quietly.

"What?" Ronnie said, jumping out her the chair.

"Oh yeah," said Varali, "and what? You're going to tell us that you're what? Wood nymphs who prance around in purple, pink, and emerald dresses?"

"No," Piper said, "we're witches."

"Oh please," Varali laughed. Ronnie began laughing in disbelief as well. Violet sat with a terrified look on her face.

"We're serious," said Paige.

"You must be something special as well," Pheobe said. "How did you know about wood nymphs? Not many non-magical people do."

"My dad used to tell me stories about mythical creates when I was little. So what? That doesn't mean anything," Varali said.

"Or maybe it does," Ronnie said. She was looking at Varali but immediately looked down at her hands when she shot her a dirty look.

"It's worth finding out" said Violet.

"No it's not," Varali shot back. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have other things to take care of that don't involve people that need to be institutionalized."

"No, wait," Pheobe ran to catch her. "You can't go. At least not until we find out what this is all about."

"We don't want you getting hurt," Paige said.

"And that's what's going to happen if you walk out of here unprepared," Piper added.

"I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself." Varali turned to leave. Piper grabbed her arm.

"Not from this you can't." She gave Varali a stern look.

"Come on," Violet said, "your mom and dad wouldn't want you getting hurt."

Varali looked at her. "My dad. My mom's dead."

"Our's too," said Piper.

Varali was silent for a moment, considering her options. Finally, "alright, I'll stay. But only until you figure this mess out," Varali said. She took a seat on the couch, crossed her arms over her chest, and waited for someone to tell her that she'd been Punk'd.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: 3 Powerful Witches

Leaving the girls in the living room, Piper, Pheobe, and Paige made their way into the kitchen.

"Something's really weird here," said Paige as she leaned up against the island.

"What do you mean?" Piper asked.

"Well, the demon who was after Ronnie almost got me with an energy ball. But something…or someone reflected it."

"What did Ronnie do?" Pheobe asked.

"When I turned to face her, she was just standing there, staring at her hands," Paige said.

"You think she did it?" Piper asked. Paige shrugged.

"I think so," Pheobe said. Piper and Paige stared at her. "When I went to help Violet, she literally disappeared and reappeared right in front of me."

"You mean she orbed?" Piper asked, shocked.

"No," said Pheobe, "there were no white lights or anything. It was like she…teleported or something. One minute she was in front of the shelf of glasses and the next she was behind it."

"So what? You think they're witches?" Piper asked.

"I don't know. But what about Varali?" Pheobe said.

"Yeah, did anything happen when you went after her?" Paige joined.

"She was thrown around pretty bad. That's about it," Piper said.

"Come on, there has to be something. Just think," Pheobe said, staring at her sister.

Piper began to think about the attack. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary…until that second hit. Something happened.

"Well, when she was thrown the second time, something did happen when she hit the ground which I found odd," Piper said, still musing over the event.

"What was that?"

"There was this loud clap of thunder but there wasn't a cloud in the sky." Piper looked at her sisters with a confused look on her face. "We need to find out who these girls are. Paige." Piper was cut off.

"I'm on it," Paige interrupted, already knowing what Piper was going to say. In a swirl of white lights, Paige orbed out to find out more from the Elders.

"So, what do we do while we wait?" Pheobe asked Piper with a concerned look on her face.

"Well, we try to keep the girls calm and try to keep ourselves sane," Piper offered.

Pheobe nodded and was silent for a moment. She looked around. "Hey, where is Leo?"

"He told me this morning that he was going to magic school today. He's trying to open it back up," Piper said.

"Cool," Pheobe said.

"Um, excuse me," a voice came from the doorway. It was Violet. "How long is this going to take? I kinda have to get back to work; my boss thinks I'm on break."

"Oh, sweetie," Pheobe said walking over to her, "I know, but you can't leave until we can be sure that you're going to be safe."

"Oh," was all Violet could say at the moment.

Piper offered her some help. "Why don't you go get the other girls and we can all sit down and have some tea. How does that sound?"

"Okay, I guess." Violet turned and made her way back into the living room for Varali and Ronnie. Piper turned and began making the tea.

"That was good," Pheobe complimented.

Piper shrugged and looked up as Violet returned with the other two.

"You girls alright?" Pheobe asked as they each sat at the kitchen table.

"I don't know. I guess," Ronnie said.

"Hey," Varali said, "where did your sister go?"

"Paige went to find out what's going on," Piper said as she made her way to the table with mugs full of tea.

"And where did she go to do that?" asked Ronnie, taking one of the mugs.

Pheobe and Piper looked at each other. "A…higher place," Pheobe said.

The girls all looked around nervously, taking a sip of their tea. The five of them sat in silence for what seemed like the longest time. Finally, Paige orbed back into the kitchen. The girls' jaws dropped as they watched Paige appear in a swirl of white lights.

"What'd you find out?" Piper asked, looking at her.

"A lot," Paige said, taking a seat.

"Like?" Pheobe asked.

"Well," Paige said looking around at the girls, "you three are really something special."

"What do you mean?" Varali asked.

"What I mean is, I went to find out about what kind of danger you're in, but instead I was told how you are. Those strange occurrences that happened earlier today with each of you were magical," Paige said.

"Huh?" Ronnie said, confusion all over her delicate face.

"You're witches…very powerful witches," Paige said.

Violet choked on the tea that was in her mouth. "What?"

Ronnie's eyes were bulging out of her head.

"Wait a minute, first you bring me here and I don't even know you and now you're trying to tell me that I'm a witch?" Varali said, anger in her voice.

"I think you're a little more than a witch. You three are The Enchanted Ones," Paige said.

"The who?" Piper and Pheobe said in unison.

"The Enchanted Ones." Paige directed her attention to her sisters. "Three prophesized girls born on the same day a year apart. There first names would start with the same letter. They would meet, become this powerful group, and basically do what we do."

"There is no way this could be true. You just picked up three random girls off the street and tell them their The Enchanted Ones? No way," Varali said.

"Okay, let's test it," Piper said. "When's your birthday?"

"July 7th."

"And year?"

"1987."

Piper shifted her gaze to the other two girls as did Varali.

"July 7th 1989," said Violet quietly.

Varali's eyes widened as she looked at Ronnie. Ronnie stared back at her. "July 7th 1988."

Varali was silent. She had to think of another way to get out of this. "Okay, well that still doesn't mean anything. Only two of us have a name that starts with a V. Hers starts with an R."

All eyes flew to Ronnie who was looking down at the table. She was so afraid to open her mouth. She didn't want any of this to be true. But it was too inevitable to avoid.

"Actually," she said, making Varali give her a dirty look. "Ronnie's a nickname. My full name is Veronica Wilson."

Varali groaned. "So what? That still doesn't mean anything. I'm out of here." She got up from her seat and made her way to the front door. Piper, Pheobe, and Paige were right on her tail.

"No, you can't leave," Paige said.

"Watch me," Varali yelled.

"You have to stay here. You're safe here," Pheobe said.

"I'm leaving and there's nothing you can do to stop me." Varali was reaching for the door when Piper grabbed her arm. "Don't touch me!" Varali yelled. Piper immediately released her arm when she spun around to face the sisters. Her eyes had changed from their emerald green to a fiery red. As quickly as it had occurred, it was gone and the emerald was back. Piper backed up into her sisters. " Don't even think about following me," Varali said, oblivious to what happened, as she walked out of the house and disappeared down the front steps.

The sisters stared after her.

"Did you see that?" Piper asked.

"Uh huh," Pheobe and Paige said in unison.

"So did we," said Veronica from behind them causing them to turn. "What do we do?"

"Well," said Paige, "I don't think any demons will be coming after you for the time being. You should go home and get some rest. If you need anything, just yell my name and I'll be there."

Veronica nodded. Violet, on the otherhand, was not so comfortable. "But, I'm not going out there alone."

"I'll go with you," said Veronica. "I'll make sure you get home safe. We'll take the bus back so that we're around a lot of people. When we get back to campus, I'll drive you home."

"Okay," Violet said. Together, the pair walked out, leaving the sisters alone.

5


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Shocking Revelations

"What are we going to do?" asked Pheobe as the sisters headed back to the kitchen.

"Well, we're going to help them and train them and do everything we can for them," Piper replied, cleaning up the mugs from the table.

"Yeah, I know that. What I meant was what are we going to do about Varali? We can't help these girls if she's not going to accept this," Pheobe said, taking a seat at the table.

"Oh," Piper said, sitting as well. "There has to be something we can do for her to get her to come around. It's just weird. I mean, you saw what happened back there, how powerful is she?"

As Piper and Pheobe mused over the question, Pheobe caught a glance at Paige. She also had taken a seat and now her head seemed to be getting closer and closer to the table. Pheobe elbowed Piper.

"How's that table smell?" Pheobe asked, making Paige jump.

"Huh?"

"You had your head down there far enough. What aren't you telling us?" Pheobe asked.

"What else did the Elders tell you?" Piper chimed in.

"Well, they just told me a little bit about the girls," Paige said.

"Like what?" asked Pheobe.

"For starters, each girl comes from a magical mother and a mortal father."

"So is their magic carried down the female line?" asked Piper.

"Seems that way. The Elders didn't really tell me much about Violet and Veronica, just that it would be a bit easier to get them to accept their destiny. They did, however, tell me a little more about Varali," said Paige.

"What's that?" Pheobe asked.

"And why would they tell you more about her than the other two?" Piper asked, confusion written all over her face.

"Because, according to them, she's going to be a hand full. Apparently she's really unique. She, like the other two, came from a magical mother and a mortal father. It's just _who_ her mother is that makes her so different." Paige stared at her sisters for dramatic effect.

Obviously, it wasn't working.

"Well, you gonna tell us what the hell you're talking about?" Piper said, staring at her sister blankly.

"Varali's mother is _the_ mother," Paige said. Pheobe and Piper stared at her. "She's Mother Nature."

"Oooh," Pheobe said.

"Oh boy," Piper commented.

"Yeah. So you see, Varali pretty powerful. She houses basically all of her mom's powers, although her mother is, of course, stronger than she is," Paige said.

"So, why does this make her a hand full?" asked Pheobe.

"Because, not only is she powerful, she's also stubborn as hell. She likes stability, she hates change, and with this now on her back, she's not going to be very receptive to anything," Paige offered.

"Gotcha."

"But wait, Varali said her mother is dead," Piper said, confused once again.

"From what the Elders told me, it was against the rules for Mother Nature to fall in love with a mortal, but she did. She fought for what she wanted, just like you and Leo. When things got a little dangerous for her and Varali's father, Mother Nature, or as she went on Earth, Damia, left for her realm. However, when Varali was four, some source of evil came after her. Damia took Varali to her father's and made him promise to take care of her and to tell her that her mother was dead," Paige said.

"And her father just agreed?" Pheobe asked.

"Well, not at first but once Damia told him how important it was for the safety of their child, he agreed."

"I don't blame him," Piper said. "So, Mother Nature is an actually person."

"Yep. She watches over everything. Wood nymphs, leprechauns, fairies, trolls, and of course the weather."

"Does she cause all these earthquakes?"

"Piper!" Pheobe said.

"What? I'm sorry. I hate those darn things. But at least I don't go running through the house naked screaming RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!" Piper said, looking at Pheobe with amusement in her eyes.

"Okay, like I told Prue, I was wearing slippers!"

Piper and Paige laughed.

"So, Paige, what are we supposed to do?" Piper asked.

"I don't know," Paige shrugged. The sisters were silent for a moment.

"I think I have an idea," Pheobe said, jumping up from her chair. "Paige, can you go get Varali?"

"Why me?" Paige asked.

"Because you're the only one who can get to her and get her back here fast enough."

"Okay, but if I come back missing an arm or something, I'm so blaming you," Paige said.

"Yeah, that's fine. Now go! Piper, come with me."

"Okay," Piper said, getting up as well as Paige orbed out of sight, "but where are we going and what are we doing?"

"You'll see," Pheobe said, grabbing her sister's hand and dragging her to the attic.

Veronica sat at the dinner table pushing her peas around on her plate with her fork. After driving Violet home, she decided not to go back to her dorm room. After all that had happened that day, she needed some time at home with her family. But as she played with her food, no appetite in sight, she really just wanted to be alone and now surrounded by her parents and little brother.

"Sweetheart, are you alright?" Veronica's trace was interrupted by the sound of her mother's voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she lied.

"You don't look too good. Are you feeling alright?" her father asked.

Veronica only got a chance to nod. Her brother cut in on her answer.

"How could see be? Look at her, she looks horrible. Oh wait…she looks that way everyday!"

"Shut up, Ryan," Veronica said, still staring down at her place.

"Aw, what's the matter? Big sis can't handle the-"

"Ryan, that's enough," their father intervened.

"Veronica, are you sure you're alright?" her mother asked once again.

"Yeah. I just-" She stopped.

"You just what, honey?"

Veronica looked at her brother. "Ryan, can I have a minute alone with mom and dad?"

"Heck no. Whatever you have to say, I definitely want to be here to hear," Ryan replied. Veronica looked at her parents.

"Ryan, take your dinner to your room," their father said.

"But-"

"Ryan Alexander Wilson, go!" their mother yelled.

"Alright, fine. But don't start yelling at me if I start playing video games." With that, Ryan grabbed his plate and walked up the stairs to his room. After hearing the door close, Veronica finally looked up at her parents.

"Alright jellybean, what's on your mind?" her dad asked, setting his plate aside. Her mother grabbed the plates from the table, placed them in the kitchen, then came back and took a seat next to Veronica.

"Well, you know how they say you learn something new everyday?" Veronica started.

"Yea, what did you learn? Something in chemistry?" her father asked.

"Heavens no! I can't even learn how to turn the burners on properly," Veronica replied causing her parents to chuckle.

"Then what did you learn?" her mother asked, worried about the expression her daughter held on her face.

"Well, something happened today."

"Something bad?" her dad asked, tension rising in his

"No, dad. Well…I don't know," Veronica said, putting her head in her hands as a sign of frustration.

"It's alright, sweetie. Just tell us what's going on," her mother said, running her hand along the back of Veronica hair.

"Okay. I was kinda sorta…attacked today."

"WHAT! What do you mean, what happened?" her father panicked.

"It's okay, dad. I'm alright. Some woman showed up. It's just what happened afterward that freaked me out."

"What's that?"

"Well, something happened during the attack that I didn't want to believe and then when the woman took me back to her house, along with two other girls, I knew that what happened was real." Veronica was completely shaken. Her mother tried to calm her.

"What happened during the attack?" she asked.

"Well, when the guy…thing…whatever he was went to throw something at the woman, I threw out my hands and…I don't know…something just happened. This weird feeling came over me and the next thing I knew, the thing was reversing itself and slamming into the guy."

"Oh," her mother said, dropping her hand from Veronica's hair. Her father looked like he was going to be sick. He looked at his wife.

"Then, when I went to the woman's house with her, her sister, and another girl that her sister showed up with, I met another girl and the woman's other sister. Apparently, these two girls were attacked as well and one of them was hurt."

"Oh God," her mother said. She was staring at her husband.

"Yeah," Veronica said, oblivious to her parents' exchange. "Then the woman I was with disappeared and about a half an hour later reappeared right in front of us." Veronica paused, unsure how to tell her parents the rest. Finally, she just let it out. "She told us that she and her sisters were witches and that…we were too."

"Oh boy," her mother said, getting up from the table. Her father followed suit. Veronica was terrified. Did her parents think she was absolutely insane?

"We knew this day would come," she heard her father whisper to her mother.

"Yes, but I was hoping not now. Not while she was going through this transition in life. It's too much for her. She can't be an Enchanted One yet." At that, Veronica jumped to her feet.

"What? You knew? You knew about all this?" she asked.

Her mother turned toward her. "Yes, honey."

"Why didn't you tell me? And how did you know?"

"Well, you see, your mom…well she's-"

"I'm a witch too." Veronica's eyes bulged out of her head.

"WHAT?" she yelled. Her mother came close.

"It's true, what those women told you. I knew about your destiny but when you didn't display any special abilities when you hit puberty, like you were supposed to, I thought you didn't inherit it. But I guess I was wrong."

"But, what about Ryan?" Veronica asked.

"The magical line only travels down the in the female gene," her father chimed in.

"Oh," was all Veronica could muster.

"Look," her mother said, pulling her into a hug, "I know you're scared…terrified even, but you're going to be okay. Who are these women who helped you?"

"They called themselves The Charmed Ones," Veronica said.

"Oh," her mother said, pushing her to arms length, "then you're in really good hands. They are amazingly powerful witches. They can help you with anything you need. Don't worry. And I'll be here too. To help you through"

"I am too, even though I don't have any real experience in the field, only what your mother has…done to me upon occasion," her father said, joining in on the hug. Her mother playfully punched him.

"Thanks guys. I was so afraid of this. But I do have one little favor to ask you," Veronica said.

"What's that?" her dad asked.

"Can we not tell Ryan about this? That's the last thing I need, him finding another reason to annoy me."

Her parents laughed. "What Ryan doesn't know won't kill him," her father said, kissing the top of her head.

When Violet opened her front door, she wasn't surprised to see her mother passed out on the couch. She set the mail she had picked up on her way in down on the table in front of her mother. She noticed as empty liquor bottle under the table. _No wonder you're out cold_, she thought to herself. Ever since Violet's birth, her mother had changed. She was distant and dismissive as if she wanted nothing to do with life and her family. Violet's father tried to stick around, but couldn't take it anymore. He left when Violet was ten. That was when her mother started drinking. Violet tried not to blame herself for the way her mother was, but every time the abuse started, she couldn't help herself. Especially with her mother yelling how much she hated her as she slapped her around.

Violet tiptoed to her room. The last thing she wanted was to wake up her mother. She walked down the small hallway to her room. After silently shutting the door, she swore to herself. She hated living in this apartment; there was never any escape from the hell she called her life. But after today, maybe there was an escape.

She removed her jacket and hung it on the doorknob of her closet. She plopped onto her bed, lying on her back.

"Wow," she said, "who'd a thunk it? Little Violet Sofia Peters, a witch."

"I wouldn't say that too loud if I were you. You might wake your mother." Violet turned at the sound of the voice and almost fell off her bed, she twisted so hard. What she saw next did make her fall off the bed. Standing in front of her was an elderly woman with a slim figure. Violet recognized her immediately.

"Grandma?" she said, shaking.

"Yes, dear," the woman replied.

"But how? You're…dead." Violet was in complete shock.

"I know sweetheart, but after what's happened to you today, you must believe that this is real."

"Oh, I do. It's just….wow…so cool!" Violet said. Her grandmother laughed. "But I don't get it. Why are you here?"

"Oh honey, I've always been here. It's just that now it's safe to show myself to you."

"So you mean you've been here for a while? And you've seen…everything?" Her grandmother nodded, a sly grin growing on her face. "Even me…sneaking out that window," she pointed across the room, "to be with Chuck Danes?"

"Yes, dear. I see all…well not really. But I do see what else goes on around here…with your mother."

"Oh, so you know she's a nut job," Violet said, sitting on her bed.

"I know…that she needs some help. But, enough about that. The real reason I'm here now is because I know that you have learned something about yourself. I'm here to answer any questions that you may have," her grandmother said.

"Okay. How did all of this happen? I was normal yesterday," Violet said.

"Actually, you were always like this. It just took a while to surface. Our magic travels down our female line."

"Our magic?"

"Yes, dear. I'm a witch, too," her grandmother said.

"Oh."

"Yes, you see, you're mother is too. But when she found out about it, she didn't want anything to do with it. She had me bind her powers."

"Huh?" Violet asked, confused.

"Uh, bind so that she could never use them."

"Oh. Why would she want to do that?"

"You're mother was never a true bed of roses," her grandmother replied.

"I can tell."

"I can not stay long, but I just wanted to tell you when you got this from. I wanted you to know that this was meant to happen, that you are meant to do good. Don't be afraid. You are never alone in this." Her grandmother began to fade.

"Wait," Violet called, "what do I do?"

"Just follow your heart, listen to your instincts."

Violet watched as her grandmother faded into nothingness. She got up and walked to her bureau. She looked at her reflection in the mirror. She smoothed her dark hair back.

"Welcome to your new life," she said to herself. "Pretty darn cool."

Varali sat on the couch flicking through varies channels on the television. She was waiting for her dad to get off work so they could have their dinner date. Bored with the lame shows on T.V, she turned it off and sat there. She glanced over at her dad's work space. It was covered with papers and other various junk. She walked over to it.

"Dad, you're a pig," she said as she began straightening up. She picked up a fast food wrapper. "Glad to see you have such a healthy diet. I so should get pay for being the maid around this place. Without me, you'd be living in an ant farm."

As she cleaned, her mind wandered to the events of the day. She was still pissed. How could three strangers tell her who she was? She knew who she was and she didn't need anyone telling her differently. As she mused, she was startled to see a mass of white light appear right in front of her. To her dismay, Paige was standing in her path.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Varali snapped.

"Coming to help you, let's go," Paige responsed.

"Pe-sha! I'm not going anywhere with you! Get out!" Varali said.

"Please, I'm not trying to hurt you. I really need you to come with me," Paige pleaded.

"No! Now get the hell out before I call the police…or my dad, I don't know which one would be worse for you." Varali turned for the phone.

"Varali, please." That made her stop. "My sisters and I can help you in more ways than you can imagine. You just have to trust me," said Paige. Varali turned and stared at her. "Please, this is really important."

Curiosity may have killed the cat, but Varali was curious to know what Paige was talking about. "Alright, fine. But if one thing happens, I'm out of there…but not before kicking your ass," Varali said, heading for the door.

Paige's stomach dropped. "Noted," she said. "But, I have a better way of leaving."

"What's that?"

"Give me your hand and I'll show you," she said with a smile. After a moment, Varali walked over and took Paige's hand. "Hold on to your cookies," she said as she orbed the two of them back to the manor.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Family Matters

"Pheobe, what are we doing up here?" Piper asked as she and Pheobe walked into the attic.

"We are here to convince Varali that what we are saying is true," she replied, opening the Book of Shadows.

"So what? You're going to cast a spell on her to make her more receptive?"

"No. We are going to conjure Mother Nature. Varali has to believe something if it's told to her by her own mother, right?" Pheobe said.

"Yea, but Varali thinks her mother is dead," Piper said, staring at her sister incredulously.

"Right. So if we show her that she's not, maybe it will spark her interest."

"Or maybe it will piss her the hell off!"

"Piper!"

"Oh, don't you Piper me. Pheobe, we could be playing with fire here."

"Or we could be doing this girl a favor. Now, the spell needs five lit white candles on the floor in the shape of a pentagram. Do you think you can do that while I get the crystals to build a protection shield around her?" Pheobe asked, eyeing Piper.

Piper rolled her eyes. "I guess, but if this girl comes in here and kills us all, I'm never speaking to you again."

"Oh Piper, stop worrying, it'll give you wrinkles." With that, Pheobe began to set up the scene for the upcoming spell.

A few moments later, Paige entered the attic with a not so happy looking Varali in tow.

"Oh good, you're here," Pheobe said, making her way back to the book. "Now we can get started."

"Wait, get started doing what?" Varali said. She turned to Paige. "I told you if anything happens…"

"Yeah, I know. You're going to kick my ass. I got it." Paige walked over to Pheobe. "Please tell me you are not planning on doing something stupid. The last thing I need is for Lara Croft over there to beat the crap out of me."

"Diddo," Piper said.

"Guys, relax," Pheobe said. "Varali, can you come over here?"

Varali walked over to where the sisters were standing. "What's that thing?" she asked as she neared the book.

"It's our book of magic. It's called the Book of Shadows," Pheobe explained. "It holds all kinds of spells and vanquishes in it."

"Spells and vanquishes?"

"Yeah, spells to do all kind of things and vanquishes to kill demons."

"Kill demons? Riiiight."

Piper gave Pheobe a look.

"Anyway, what do you want? Why did she come get me?" Varali asked.

"Well, because we wanted to show you something. Something that will hopefully open you up to a whole new world."

"And what's that?" Varali asked, attitude in her voice.

"I'm glad you asked," Pheobe said, taking her by the shoulders and walking her to a place a few feet away from the crystals. "Stand right here." She walked back to the book and her sisters. "Alright, ready?"

Piper and Paige nodded. Together the sisters chanted:

"_Powers of the witches rise, course unseen across the skies. __Come to us we call you near, come to us and settle here."_

Confused took over when nothing happened.

"Why didn't that work?" Pheobe said, scanning the book. "I did everything it said."

Paige leaned towards the book. "Not everything." She pointed. "Look, it says right here we need something of nature."

"Ooh."

"Hey, why don't you let me go get that for you," Varali said.

"Oh, no," Piper intervened. "Paige can get it."

Paige walked to the window and leaned out. "Branch," she said and watched as a branch from the nearest tree appeared in her hand. "Got it," she said, turning back towards her sisters.

"Great. Go put it in the middle of the pentagram," Pheobe instructed.

Once Paige completed the task, she walked back over to the book. Varali blew out a sigh of frustration.

"Okay, let's try this again," Pheobe said. Again, the sisters chanted.

"_Powers of the witches rise, course unseen across the skies. __Come to us we call you near, come to us and settle here."_

This time, the girls watched as the whirl of wind entered the room. Varali breathing quickened and her eyes went wide.

"What are you doing?" she asked frantically. "Stop this, now!" She looked back and forth between the sisters and the mini hurricane going on in front of here. "STOP IT!" Varali turned and started to run from the room. Pheobe's voice stopped her.

"Varali, wait! Look!" Varali turned around slowly and found herself staring at the back of something incredibly. The whirl of wind was shifting itself into the shape of a woman. Varali watched as the wind changed completely, leaving an elegant looking woman in its path. Her long, curly dark hair fell down her back as she stood there staring at the sisters, oblivious to the person behind her.

"Can I help you?" asked Mother Nature.

"Well," Paige said, "maybe not us. But we were hoping you could help someone else." When Mother Nature gave her a confused look, Paige motioned over the woman's shoulder.

Varali's eyes bulged out of her head when the woman turned her way. Facing her was a woman who looked a lot like Varali, herself. The woman even had emerald green eyes like Varali. The woman stared at her with the same amazement. Only, her amazement was more "family reunion" than "what the hell".

"Varali," the woman said, on the verge of tears.

Varali could only stare. Who was this woman and why did she look so familiar? Then it hit here. The pictures. Pictures that her father showed her everyday as she grew up. She'd come to love the face in the photos, always smiling and laughing. Now, she was staring at that face again only this time, it was living and moving.

"M-mom?" Varali said with a shaky voice.

"Oh, yes," her mother said, making her way over to Varali to give her a hug. She stopped in her tracks.

"No, you can't go outside of the crystals," Pheobe said, making her way around the book. "They're there to protect you."

"Thanks," Mother Nature replied, "but I have my own protection." With that, she held up an amulet that was around her neck and stepped out of the pentagram. She turned back to Varali and pulled her into a warming hug.

"But, how?" was all Varali could get out.

"Oh sweetie, there's so much that needs to be explained to you," her mother said.

"Dad told me you were dead."

"I know. I'll explain that later. I don't have much time here when someone conjures me. When I come on my own, I can stay as long as I want."

"But, I'm so confused," Varali said.

"I know, Moon, but my time is running out." Her mother took her hands. "Whenever you need me, just think of me and I'll be there."

"Moon?"

"That's what you name means. You dad never told you that?" Varali shook her head. "There's so much you need to learn, but at another time."

As her mother touched her cheek, Varali watched her fade away. She wanted to reach out and grab her, make her stay. Tears came to her eyes when she hear a soft "I love you" in her ear and her mother disappeared completely. Varali nearly flew ten feet in the air when Pheobe placed a hand on her shoulder.

"How…did you do that?" Varali asked, turning in her direction.

"Magic," Pheobe said. "Something you possess."

Varali was silent, thinking about what just occurred. She wanted to cry. She wanted to run out of that house and forget everything, but she knew there was no way she could do that. Pheobe noticed her distressed look.

"Sweetie, are you okay?"

Something clicked in Varali's mind.

"Her amulet," she whispered.

"Yeah, she uses it for protection," Pheobe said softly.

"No," Varali said. She lifted the side of her shirt slightly. "It's my birthmark."

Pheobe leaned forward to get a better look. Sure enough Varali's birthmark was identical to her mother's protection amulet. Piper and Paige had also joined to take a look.

"Whoa," Piper said. There was silence around the room.

"Can I go home now?" Varali asked, sounding somewhat like a small child. Piper saw her "bad girl" image disappear and leave behind a very scared young lady.

"Yea," she said. "Paige will orb you."

"No, I think I'll take a cab," Varali said.

"I'll go call it for you," said Paige, making her way out of the attic.

"Thanks," Varali said. She hugged herself as Pheobe and Piper led her out of the attic as well.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Someone To Count On

Violet could tell her mother was awake. She could hear her padding through the living room. She groaned when she heard to mother open the refrigerator; she knew her mother was trying to find some kind of alcohol to drink. _Didn't you drink enough for one night_, Violet thought to herself. She jumped when she heard the refrigerator door slam shut. Her mother didn't find anything which meant Violet had about five seconds before her mother would take her anger out on her.

Five seconds up. She stared at the door as her mother banged her fist against it.

"Open the damn door!" her mother shouted.

_Just do what she tells you and maybe you won't get hit tonight_, Violet told herself. She made her way to the door. With her hand on the knob, she took a deep breath and slowly pulled it open.

"Where the hell have you been?" her mother said.

"What do you mean?" Violet asked, fear creeping into her. "I've been in my room. You were asleep."

"Bull. Why were you late?"

"Because I had to go back to work," Violet said.

"Back to work? Why did you leave work?" her mother asked angrily.

Oh no, Violet had said too much. "I just did, okay?" She tried to push her way past her mother. She blocked her.

"Wrong answer," her mother said. She shoved Violet to the ground. When Violet hit the ground, her elbow slammed into the floor, causing her to grip it and scream out in pain. As her mother moved toward her, Violet got to her feet, pushed her mother out of the way, and ran out of her room and down the hall. She heard her mother coming after her.

An urge came over Violet, one that she had felt before but never gave in to. This time, however, she did. She turned toward her mother with her feet planted firmly on the ground.

"You're not angry that I came home late. Hell, you were past out on the couch. What you're pissed about is the fact that there's nothing left in this house for you to drink!" Violet shouted, causing her mother to stop in her tracks.

"What did you just say to me?" her mother asked, fury in her eyes.

"You heard me," Violet replied. It was as if Violet herself wasn't speaking. Like there was someone was inside of her being this newly confident person. Violet silently told herself to shut up but it was no use. The damage had already been done. Her mother was coming towards her with a new blaze of fire under her step.

"You little piece of-" Her mother's last words were cut off by the sound of Violet's scream.

Violet fell hard to the ground at her mother's first blow to her head. She scrabbled to her feet and turned to see her mother preparing to hit her again. Violet spun to avoid the next blow, but when she opened her eyes she was shocked to see that she wasn't in the living room any longer nor was she in the presence of her mother. She was in her bedroom. She stared at the open door.

"What the hell?" she heard her mother say. "VIOLET!"

Violet bolted to the door as fast as she could, slammed it shut, and locked it. She backed away as she heard her mother banging on it once again, screaming her name violently.

Violet had to think fast. Veronica. She had given Violet her number incase she ever needed it. Well, this was an appropriate time, right? She ran to her jacket and searched the pockets. In her frantic quest, she saw the piece of paper fall to the floor. She bent down and picked it up. Grabbing the phone, she dialed the number. After two rings, a girl picked up.

"Hello."

"Yes, hi, can I please speak to Veronica?" Violet said into the phone.

"I'm sorry. Veronica's at home for the night. Can I take a message?"

"Um, no. Would you happen to have her address?"

"Hang on, let me check." Violet heard Veronica's roommate sit the phone down as she searched. A moment later, she came back on the line. "Yes, here it is. 2327 Darcy Drive."

"Okay, thanks," Violet said. She hung up the phone and grabbed her jacket. Without even a single glance at the door, she climbed out of her bedroom window.

Veronica sat on the padded ledge of her window and looked out at the sky. It was almost completely dark now, with the moon making it's descend over San Francisco. She stared at the half moon, thinking about her day and what she just learned from her parents. It's a good thing they weren't freaking out about everything because she sure was. Just then, there was a tap on her door.

"Come in," Veronica said without glancing at the door.

It was her mother.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"Yeah," Veronica said, turning her head to look at her mother, "I'm fine."

"Okay, well if you need anything, I'll be right downstairs cleaning up."

Veronica nodded as her mother gave her a wink and softly closed the door. Veronica turned back to the window. She truly loved her parents. All of her friends in high school thought it was weird that she had such a great relationship with them. Because her parents were so warm and giving, she never saw it necessary to do anything that would make them upset. Her brother, on the other hand, was a different story. Ryan couldn't stay out of trouble. It seemed like every two seconds her parents were getting phone calls from his teachers and the neighbors about whatever mayhem their son was causing.

Speak of the devil; Ryan came bursting into Veronica's room, knocking the door into the wall with a bang. Veronica jumped.

"Ever heard of knocking?" she said, giving her baby brother an annoyed look.

"Yea, but I never understood it," he replied. "I mean, why waste your time knocking when you can just walk right in?"

"Because it's common decency," Veronica replied.

Ryan looked in the air with his face scrunched up. "Yea, no, I don't like that idea."

Veronica blew out a breath of frustration. _Little brothers_.

"What do you want?" she asked, not hiding her impatience.

"Just to let you know that you do have some friends in the world. Or at least one. She's downstairs."

"What?" Veronica asked, staring at Ryan.

"Yea, I know. Completely bizarre that someone's visiting you," he said.

"No, shut up! Who's downstairs?" Veronica asked getting up from her seat of the window seat.

"I don't know. Some girl. Mom and dad told me to tell you that she was here." Ryan started picking with the mardi gras beads Veronica kept on her bedpost. She walked past him to the door, smacking his hand on the way. "Ow," he said, drawing his hand to his chest.

"Don't touch my stuff," she said without looking at him. As she walked down the hallway, she stopped dead at the top of the stairs. Her jaw dropped. Starting up at her in the foyer was Violet.

Violet stared up at Veronica with a paralyzed look on her face. It was obvious to Veronica that something happened. She ran down the stairs.

"What are you doing here? Are you alright? Was there another attack?" Veronica said so fast, she caught Violet off guard.

"No, I-" Violet stopped and looked at the floor. "I just…didn't want to be home right now." She was silent, thinking of how much to tell Veronica. _Nothing_, she decided. "There's no one there. My mom's…in L.A for a few days."

"Oh, well," Veronica looked at her parents. They gave her a nod of approval. "You can stay here if you'd like."

A smile spread across Violet's face. "Thanks," she said.

Veronica put her arm around Violet's shoulder and led her to the kitchen. She couldn't help but feel a big sister role come on when she was around her. "Are you hungry?"

"Starved. There was nothing in the fridge at my place except…" Violet almost slipped up. "…water."

"That sucks. I believe we have some leftovers from dinner. I'll heat it up for you," Veronica said, making her way to the refrigerator.

As Violet ate, the girls sat in a comfortable silence. Veronica could tell there was something wrong, but she didn't want to press Violet about her personal life. Violet surprised her by breaking the silence with the topic of Varali.

"So, do you think she'll ever come around to this whole witch thing? Varali, I mean?" Violet asked, mid-chew.

"I don't know. I hope so. I mean, I don't think we can do this alone. It was meant for all three of us to be together," Veronica said.

"Yea." Violet was silent for a minute. "Hey, thanks for letting me stay here. Like I said, my mom's in Sacramento." Violet went back to eating.

Veronica stared at Violet, but didn't say a word. When Violet looked up at her, she forced an approving smile. Veronica learned something new that night…that Violet was a horrible liar.

Varali sat at the bar in her father's kitchen picking at the pepperoni on her pizza. She didn't have much of an appetite, not after what happened within that day. She didn't want to believe any of it, but after seeing her mother whom she thought was dead, it was hard not to. Then there was the whole birthmark thing. How the hell did she end up with a birthmark that was identical to her mother's amulet?

That little speculation was what was keeping her mind reeling at the moment. She couldn't seem to focus on anything else. Especially not her dad who was rambling on and on about some fitness thing. All Varali knew was that she wanted him to shut up for once in the nineteen years of her life. That wasn't going to happen anytime soon.

"So, what do you think?" her father was asking, mid-chew.

"About what?" she asked, looking up from her pizza with confusion in her face.

"Have you been listening to a word I've been saying for the past half hour?" he asked.

Varali couldn't let him in on the fact that she wasn't paying him any attention. "Dad, for the past half hour, you've been going on and on about so many things, it's hard to keep track." That seemed to work; her dad laughed and took another bite of his pizza.

"I was telling you about a new gym that just opened and about their family fitness club. I figured you and I could sign up that way we'd spend more time together."

"Oh, like every other day isn't enough," Varali laughed.

"Five minutes during the week when you duck in here, grab a poptart, and duck out does not count," he said. "I'm gonna stop buying poptarts. That way you'd have to sit and eat."

Varali laughed and put her head down toward her untouched pizza. She began picking with the pepperoni again. This time, however, the room was silent and her father was staring at her.

"Are you alright? You haven't even taken a bite out of your pizza," he asked.

"Not really hungry," she said shortly.

"Could have fooled me. You were complaining about how hungry you were when you kept calling me earlier."

"Yeah, well I lost my appetite," she said, her anger rising.

"Alright, chill," her father said, putting his hands at surrender. "What's got your panties in a knot?"

"Nothing," Varali said, "and don't refer to my underwear ever again."

Her father chuckled. "Sorry. Won't happen again, moonhead."

Varali looked up at attention. "What did you just call me?"

"Moonhead," her father said, confused. "You know, what I've called you since you were little."

"Yeah, I know. I just…uhh…" Varali was silent for a moment. "Um, I'm gonna finish this in my room," she said, grabbing her plate and heading down the hall of her father's condo to her room.

When she was finally in her room, she shut the door behind her and put the plate on her dresser. She couldn't believe it. Her father just lied to her, right in her face. Yes, her father called her Moonhead since she was little, but he never told her why he calls her that. Okay, so it wasn't a lie, he just neglected to tell her the true story, but still. Why couldn't he just tell her? This pissed her off beyond believe. As a gust of wind blew through her hair, she opened her door with such force, it bounced off the wall with a bang. She stormed down the hallway back to when she and her father were eating. She found him still sitting at the table, reading the newspaper.

"You lied to me," she said, her voice so dark it surprised her. Her father looked up from his paper. His face went from blank to fear as he looked into his daughter's eyes.

"Sweetie, what's wrong?" he asked, pushing the paper aside.

It was then that Varali felt the hot tears rolling down her face. She hadn't even realized that she started crying. "You lied to me," she repeated. "How could you?" Again, her voice was so low and dark, it sounded like it was coming from somewhere else.

"What are you talking about?" her father asked, getting up from his seat and making his way around the table towards her.

Varali smirked. "I saw mom today, dad," she said matter-of-factly.

"Wh-" Her father couldn't even finish his thought. He stepped closer to Varali.

"You told me she was dead, but nope. She's very much alive," Varali said. She seemed to be getting darker. "You know what else I learned today, dad? That I'm a WITCH!"

Her father stood there speechless. He watched as Varali went from angry to hysterical.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME?" she screamed, sobbing uncontrollably.

Her father reached for her arm. "Sweetie, I-"

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" Varali jerked her arm away from him. It was clear her father was hurt. His concern was clear on his face.

"Please, just let me explain," he said, a tear rolling down his face.

"Don't bother," Varali said. She turned away from him and headed back to her room. She never knew that her father stood in that spot for the next hour crying over his betrayal.

8


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: The Truth

Varali sat at the desk in her room with her head in her hands. Her mind was reeling in so many ways. She couldn't believe her father, her best friend, lied to her. Her whole life was one big lie. She spent her years growing up believing her mother was dead. But the fact that she was very much alive changes everything.

With tears streaming down her face once again, Varali got up from her desk and made her way to her bed. She threw her hair up haphazardly into a bun and, lying on her back, stared at the ceiling still wrestling with her thoughts. She needed answers, but where would she get them from? She didn't want to talk to her father. That was completely out of the question. If she could have things her way, she'd never speak to him again. So, who could she turn to? The answer popped into her head just as quick as the question had. Her mother. Didn't she say something about always being around? But what did Varali have to do to get in touch with her? She didn't know that spell that got to her before.

_Whenever you need me, just think of me and I'll be there._

Varali bolted upright in her bed. Her mother's voice came to her as clear as if she were sitting next to her whispering in her ear. She had to look around the room to make sure she was alone. She was. She rested back on her bed and continued to stare at the ceiling.

_If I think of her, she'll come._

Varali closed her eyes and willed her mind clear of its chaos. _Please mom_, she silently prayed, _I need you. Please._

As Varali kept her eyes closed, a gust of wind blew lightly over her still body. Her nostrils were suddenly filled with the scent of cinnamon. When the wind died down, she opened her eyes to see an elegant woman standing by her window with her back to her.

"The moon is beautiful tonight, isn't it?" her mother asked, staring out the window.

"Why did dad lie to me?" Varali asked, propping up on her elbows.

"Come look," her mother said, motioning for Varali to stand beside her. "It's just too gorgeous to pass up."

Varali got up from her place on her bed and went to join her mother by the window. As she stood there, she could smell the hint of cinnamon coming from her mother. Looking up at the moon, Varali saw how it was unusually bright tonight.

"Wow," she said, mesmerized. "It's so…"

"I know," her mother finished.

"Mom,"_ wow that's weird_, Varali thought to herself, "I really need to talk to you about-"

"About your dad. About everything," her mother said.

"Yeah. I just don't understand why he lied. Why couldn't he just tell me?" Varali asked, staring at her mother.

"Because, sweetie," her mother suddenly looked uncomfortable, "I told him…not to tell you."

"What?" Varali's anger was started to rise again. Another gust of wind blew through her hair.

"Calm down," her mother said. "Don't wanna start a tornado in the bedroom."

"Huh?"

"Come…sit." Her mother grabbed her hand and led her back over toward her bed. As Varali sat, her mother took a seat beside her. "Okay, where to start?" her mother mused to herself. "I guess I'll just start from the beginning." She shifted on the bed so that she was facing Varali.

"About twenty years ago, I came out of my realm and stayed here for a while. Sometimes I did that just to see what my work was doing to the world. You know, making sure everything was as it should be. Usually I only stay earth bound for a few months, but this trip was different. You see, when I come here, even if it's only for up to six months, I try to fit in as much as possible. So, I was working as a waitress in a diner not far from here. That's when I met your father." Varali's mother smiled to herself. "He came into the diner and ordered a cup of coffee. I wasn't supposed to be waiting on him, but the waitress who was got a little busy so I did her a favor. I brought him the newspaper with his coffee. I have to admit, I couldn't resist those mesmerizing hazel eyes of his. The next thing I knew, he was asking me out on a date.

"I wasn't planning on falling in love, but that's what happened. Those few months turned into six and then a year. I was here way longer then I should have been, but I just couldn't leave. Your father made me feel so…alive and beautiful and most of all, normal. I didn't want to give that up. I even told him about who I really was, but he didn't care. He said he loved me anyway. He asked me to move in with him, which I did, but that wasn't the only thing he asked me. He asked me to marry him. I never thought I could get that happy. Then I found out I was pregnant with you. My world was complete.

"I'd made up my mind to stay here. I figured I could check in with my realm every once in a while just to make sure things were going smoothly. I didn't expect for my enemies to find me, but they did. They attacked one day when your father, luckily, was at work. I fended them off as best as a woman who was four months pregnant could, but I couldn't let it happen again."

"But, what about your amulet?" Varali asked.

"I was wearing it, but the longer I stay earth bound, the weaker it gets. It didn't have a strong enough spell on it. Luckily, now, after many setbacks, it does," her mother replied.

"Oh."

"So, I waited until your father got home and told him that I had to leave. Of course it broke his heart but I promised him that we would always be together. Four years later I pop up at his door with you sleeping in my arms. Evil managed to get through the force field that's around my realm and were coming after you. I brought you here for protection. Your father agreed, of course, to take you but when I told him to tell you that I was dead, he hated it. After some argument, he finally agreed. I'm so sorry, but it was the only thing I could think of that would protect you," her mother finished.

"Did you miss me? Did you even think of me?" Varali asked.

Her mother reached behind her and unpinned her bun, letting her long hair fall down to her back. "Sweetie, I thought about you every second of every day. Every night of your life, I would sneak in here after you'd gone to sleep just to hold you. Trust me, honey, I watched you grow up."

"Did dad know you did that?" Varali asked.

"Of course. I would hold you for a while and then be with him for a while. I would leave right before you got up to get ready for school. On your first day of school, I was there. I was standing under the big oak tree that was outside of your preschool. Like I said, I watched you grow up. I actually helped your father put together you dollhouse and bike for Christmas a couple of times."

"I still can't believe he lied to me," Varali said.

"Don't blame him. If anything, blame me. Your father was just doing what he was told," her mother replied.

Varali stared at her mother, but soon her vision blurred as tears sprang to her eyes. Her mother reached out to her. "Come here. Let's get you to bed." With that, her mother got up from the bed and pulled back the covers. Once Varali was settled inside, her mother joined her, pulling her into her arms. With her mother stroking her hair, Varali was almost asleep. She shifted to look at her mother.

"I need to know something before I go to sleep," she said.

"What's that, honey?"

"Do you still love dad?"

"Oh yes," her mother replied, "maybe more than I did all those years ago."

With that, Varali finally fell asleep.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10: Reunited

Veronica woke up with a start. She'd had the most terrifying dream of her life, but she couldn't quite remember what it was. All she knew was that it was about Violet and that she was in trouble. Glancing over at her sleeping company, Veronica paid attention to the slight rise and fall of Violet's chest. _Okay good, I didn't wake her up_, Veronica thought.

Switching her gaze to her bedside clock, she saw that it was almost 3am. She tried to go back to sleep, but found that her mind was too boggled to succeed in the attempt. Glancing at Violet once more, she silently slid out of bed and out the room, shutting the door behind her.

Violet heard Veronica's silent attempt at leaving the room. Once the door was shut and she made sure to hear Veronica make her way down the stairs, Violet sprang up from the bed and grabbed what little she brought with her_. I can't stay here_, she thought to herself. _Ronnie's great, a sister I never had, but I can't let her find out about me_. With that thought, Violet prepared to escape out the bedroom window.

Veronica sat at the island in her kitchen sipping a glass of milk. Something wasn't right about Violet, but she couldn't seem to figure it out. Maybe she just wasn't feeling well. She was complaining about a slight headache earlier. Veronica had to give her some Advil to help her get rid of it.

Just stop thinking about it, Veronica thought. You'll never be able to figure out the mystery of Violet unless she tells you.

Veronica turned at the sound of footsteps behind her. She watched as her mother, with puffy eyes and bed tousled hair, walked into the kitchen.

"Hey," her mother said, sitting next to her, "you okay? The only time you sit down here with a glass of milk is when you can't sleep. Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, I just had a really weird dream," Veronica replied.

"About what?"

"See, that's the problem. I don't remember."

"Don't you hate that?" Her mother watched as Veronica nodded. "Hey, tell me something. What's the deal with your friend?"

"I don't know, Mom. That's what I've been trying to figure out. She's not like some criminal or anything, but it's obvious that something's not quite right," Veronica said.

"Yeah well, don't give up on her, honey," her mother said, stroking the back of Veronica's hair. "I can tell she looks up to you."

Veronica smiled at her mother. She downed the rest of her milk and got up from her seat. "'Night, Mom."

"Goodnight, sweetie," her mother replied, getting up as well.

Instead of making her way to her bedroom, Veronica made a pit stop to the bathroom. When she came out, her mother was already in her bedroom. Veronica tip-toed to her room and slid the door open. To her surprise, the room was empty. She walked all the way in and shut the door.

"Violet?" she whispered.

To Veronica's dismay, her bedroom window was wide open.

Joe Stevens made his way to his daughter's room. Yes, it was the middle of the night, but Varali was just like him in certain aspects. When something was bothering her, she didn't sleep. He knew she would be awake and he had to talk to her; had to clear the air.

As he opened the door, he was surprised to see that Varali's bedside light was off. Opening the door wider to let the hall light in, Joe was even more surprised to see that Varali wasn't alone. Sitting there, holding his daughter, was her mother. At the sight of the light, she lifted her gaze and settled it on Joe. A soft smile came across her face.

Joe stood in shock as he watched her gently slide out of the bed, placing Varali's upper body onto the pillows.

"Mom?" Varali said, stirring from her sleep.

"Shh. It's alright. I'm going to talk to your father for a bit. Go back to sleep," her mother replied.

As Varali fell back to sleep, Joe watched her mother slide across the floor toward him. He backed away, allowing her room to exit the bedroom. His eyes moved over her as she turned away from him to shut the door. He reached his hand out and ran his fingers through her long, curly, brown hair. She turned around and smiled at him.

"Hi, Joey," she whispered.

"Hi, Mia," he said, almost mesmerized.

"Let's move away from the door," she said, grabbing his arm. "We don't want to wake Varali."

Joe let Damia lead him to the living room. When they were finally out of earshot from Varali's room, Joe pulled her toward him.

"I missed you," he said.

"Likewise. I'm sorry I haven't been around in a while. Things have been a little stir crazy," Damia said. _There goes those hazel eyes_, she thought to herself.

"The past few months have been torture, but I'm glad you're here now." With that, Joe pulled her in and kissed her gently on the lips. Damia brought her hands up around his neck, deepening the kiss.

When they finally broke apart, Damia turned away from Joe and walked towards the window. Joe came up behind her and hugged her from behind.

"We need to talk about Varali, Joey," Damia said.

"I know. I just don't know how to handle everything. What can I expect from here?"

"Well, she's a lot like me. She'll be powerful and, since she's new to this whole thing, her emotions will play a big part in her powers."

"So, what do I do?" Joe asked.

"Just," Damia turned to face him, "stick with her. Be patient and watch her moods. I'll be around a lot more now that she knows about me. She'll be fine. Trust me."

"Trust you." Joe said thoughtfully.

"Yes. Don't you trust your fiancée?" Damia asked.

"My fiancée?"

"Yes. You asked me to marry you, remember?"

"Of course I remember," Joe said.

"Things haven't changed, have they?" Damia looked concerned.

Joe had to smile at his love's terrified look. "Of course they haven't. I will marry you one of these days, Damia. You're the only one for me."

"Good," Damia said, standing on her tip-toes to kiss him again. "I'd better go. I have a few things to check on back in the kingdom. I'll be back later."

"Okay," Joe frowned. "How do I get in touch with you if I need to?"

"Just say my name, I'll come."

Joe kissed Damia one more time before watching her fade in a swirl of wind. The last thing he heard was a soft _I love you_ that brushed past his ear.

4


End file.
